Ferguson

CMO & Chief Digital Officer AAXIS | 2012 – 2018

Ferguson is the leading plumbing and heating products distributor in the US, with annual sales ~$22B and online sales approaching $5B.

THE GOAL

Ferguson realized several years ago that their ability to leverage digital  technologies to improve how their customers were able to do business with them, was going to be a key factor in allowing them to remain a leader in their industry, continue to grow and to successfully combat disruption coming from tough competition in the market. With over 2,400 retail locations, 23,000 associates, and over $22B in revenue, Ferguson’s efforts to create highly engaging, effective, omni-channel experiences was going to be no small effort.

THE SOLUTION

Working with Ferguson’s CMO and eCommerce team, I was part of the AAXIS leadership team that helped lead the strategy and execution of the following:

  • Strategy – Designing a strategic and prioritized capabilities roadmap:
    • Real-time omni-channel inventory across 1,300 stores and 10 DCs
    • Simplified quoting and contracts process with custom quoting.
    • Quick Ordering and quick re-ordering 
    • Guest user access to product catalogs and checkout.
    • Accounting workflow​s
    • Bill Pay/Invoicing
    • Dozens of customer “self service” features. 
  • Conversion – Site redesign with more intuitive navigation (IA), product search, page designs and checkout (UX). Approvals workflow

THE RESULTS

  • Improved conversion rates, due to easier and faster self-service checkout process
  • Increased site visits from mobile and tablet devices, due to new responsive design
  • Reduced sales support costs, due to a significant increase in self-service orders and fewer customer service calls
  • Increased average number of products purchased per order
  • Increased turnaround time for online quotesresulting in improved customer satisfaction​ scores